des201_carnothekfandomcom-20200215-history
Visual Design
Environment Design Interior Design The interior space of the game, extending to the Pod Exterior and Carnothek, is inspired by the industrial design of 1970-1980s freighter design. Use of heavy metal, direct visual inspiration from ship form with a focus on bulky and long-lasting designs. Simple forms using soft curves on edges and otherwise being very boxy minimises production complexity but still keeps it somewhat ergonomic. This design should reflect a pragmatic, cost-minimal construction reflecting the kind of environment a blue collar worker would be in. It brings up intertextual references to media such as Alien, conjuring the player a feeling of discomfort, threat, and isolation. In constrast to this though Carnothek uses its ergonomics and its clean design to focus on the feelings of isolation. There is no particular feeling shown in the pod's design, instead it's cold and detached. Exterior Design Relating to the interstellar sights of Carnothek, the views of outside Pod-21 contrast to the dull and unwelcoming, though not uncomfortable, to what's inside. As the game progresses the pod will drift across space in an obviously unrealistic fashion, the views embodying a sense of surreality. What they can objectively see is obviously not real, all that can be relied upon is the truth of the character's words, chosen by the player. The view will always be changing as the pod drifts, though if the player does not progress the story in line with the exterior it will gradually return to near darkness. Otherwise a wide range of astral phenomena will be featured; neublas, trinary stars, asteroid belts, and even voidborne life. However they will always be seen as overwhelming in their scale or to be very distant from the player, something they won't be able to react to. The beauty of these vistas is intended to stimulate the player to thoughtfulness, the gameplay will be punctuated both with moments of mundane action but also by drawing their attention to what's outside through the use of sound and colour. It's intended in these moments of non-gameplay for them to reflect while still being to engage with game, looking at what's outside the pod. Use of Colour Initially the pod will be poorly lit and will remain this way for the majority of the game. The darkness being there to emphasise the feelings of loneliness. When the focus is on gameplay it will largely be lit by phenomena outside in soft and dim colours, with these becoming much stronger when the aim is to draw their attention away. Particular sequences will have a dominant colour associated with them; blue, green, red, yellow. This colour diagetically originating from the exterior of the pod. Colours will be associated with the overall emotion of a scene though this is not a strong focus. Instead the intense and various colours will be there to build the spiritual feelings of the game, that sense of emotional exploration. The colours used in the Industrial Design that inspired the interiors is an aspect that hasn't been carried over, there's limited colour in the pod and instead the flat greys are used so as to allow outside colours to fully dominate and change the way the interior looks. Character Design Due to the game's design the player's character nor anyone else is ever seen. The aesthetic of Pod-21 can lead the player to imagine what it may be but otherwise they're left to imagine what they'd like. This works in-conjunction with some of the deliberately vague (at least initially) cutscenes and mundane gameplay aboard the Pod. The player is left to interpret what they mean, as defining it would give the player an impression of the character that they should make for themselves. Sound Design The sounds of Pod-21 will reflect the isolation of the player; minimalistic and most often quiet, underplayed and designed to fade into the background of the player's perception. Often will the line between diagetic and non-diagetic be blurred, and music will fade into the low rumble of the ship's generator. In line with the Environmental Design this will contrast to the sounds associated with the passing sights of Pod-21's journey, to emphasise the sense of spirituality and surreality in the player's journey and reflections. * Reference 1 - Adagio Stellar * Reference 2 - Miserere Mei Deus * Reference 3 - Children of the Omnissiah Diagetic Sound Pod sounds consist of a various computer sounds, the physicality of the pod, and its mechanics. Computer sounds being integrated into the UI with bleeps and bloops accompanying the player's actions when engaging in dialogue actions. The pod is constructed out of metals and though its interior features plasticated surfaces and mass produced furnishings. Pod mechanics include features such as the constant low thrumming of its engine that provides a sense of warmth and comfort to the player, with which the current tone of a scene can be set. If increased in volume, intensity it may correspond to a heightening emotion of dialogue, or it may cut out for a particularly isolating moment outside of the regular gameplay to emphasise the loneliness of the character. Music Separated into two distinct portions that occassionally meld together. Pod-21 and the Virtual Intelligence are represented by the understated synth music, its purpose largely so that at key moments its presence may be removed either to emphasise the astral music or for silence. Astral music is related to the passing space phenomena that appear and being inspired by the ideas of religious pilgrimage take inspiration from Western Christianity and its choral tradition. The visual flair or closeness of phenomena will be associated with strong, dynamic music to signal to the player that there is something to look at and encourage them to spend time reflecting on the gameplay. The mixture of these musical forms will take place over the course of the game; as the player reaches an endpoint in the narrative these forms mixing symbolises their ability now to reflect on their character's actions, knowing the full story. Music is not dynamic and will be associated with particular stages in the game's story though the particular path the player takes will not alter this. Music that may be interpreted as generic or minimal has been chosen for this reason, the music fitting the overall tone rather than the player's particular path. This does however allow a more in-depth connection between the astral visuals and music.